Play Pitfall on Msdos Online

Pitfall! came out in 1982 for MS-DOS as part of the Classic Games series, published by Activision. It was one of those early side-scrolling platformers that really defined what you could do on a home computer, back when most games were still text adventures or simple arcade ports. The jungle setting felt fresh, and the smooth scrolling was impressive for its time.

You control an explorer named Pitfall Harry, moving screen by screen through a hazardous jungle. Your goal is to gather 32 treasures within a 20-minute time limit. The main mechanics involve swinging on vines over pits, jumping over or ducking under obstacles like rolling logs and fire, and avoiding enemies like scorpions and crocodiles. The pacing is relentless, and the timing for jumps and swings is unforgiving; one mistimed move often means losing a life or precious seconds. It feels tense and demanding, but pulling off a perfect run is incredibly satisfying.

Each game uses different controls, most DOS games use the keyboard arrows. Some will use the mouse , "Alt" ,"Enter" and "Space bar".